Leading the troops into the realm of systems engineering

TNO-ESI was asked to help the Netherlands armed forces take their systems engineering know-how to the next level. After a successful pilot training with twenty participants, four additional groups of twenty will be upskilled this year. The Dutch Materiel and IT Command (COMMIT) is responsible for the supply of equipment to the Netherlands armed forces. Reporting to the Ministry of Defense, the government agency is involved in purchasing and maintaining a wide variety of gear, including safety vests and field kitchens, but also airplanes and battleships. “It ranges from seemingly simple stuff to highly advanced systems,” says Mark Michielsen, head of the Weapon System Management Knowledge Center at COMMIT.

Although the agency doesn’t do much actual development, except for the shipbuilding projects, it does engage in many systems engineering activities, especially the early stages. “One of our main tasks is translating an assignment from the ministry in The Hague into a schedule of requirements, which we then put out on the market,” explains Michielsen. “The aim is to buy new systems off the shelf as much as possible.”

Efficiently dealing with such a variety of equipment requires a clear systems engineering framework, based on a common systems language. Unfortunately, that’s what’s lacking at COMMIT right now. As pointed out by Joanita Bisdonk, manager systems integrator, “We’re currently working in a very fragmented way. A lot of considerations pop up after decisions have already been made. If we were to follow a more structured systems engineering approach, we could be much more effective.”

On top of that, Michielsen observes that internal collaboration is hindered by a confusion of tongues. “Within NATO, we’ve agreed upon a common language for system lifecycle processes: AAP-48, based on ISO 15288. Yet, at COMMIT, we see people employing their own terminology. We see different terms being used for the same thing or the same term for different things. That makes it challenging to work together.”

From various parts of the organization, people began expressing the need to extend their knowledge about systems engineering and adopt a common systems language. This prompted Michielsen to contact TNO-ESI. “We had learned that they offer a training course covering the fundamental aspects of systems engineering, based on ISO 15288. It exactly aligned with our needs.”

The Systems Engineering Fundamentals training is a coproduction of TNO-ESI and the University of South-Eastern Norway, masterminded by systems engineering guru Gerrit Muller, who works at both organizations. “The course has been designed for the high-tech industry, where it’s been running for several years at our partner companies,” says Joris van den Aker, who manages ESI’s competence development program. “Although the defense sector was relatively uncharted territory for the training, the pilot we did with COMMIT showed a direct fit of about 90 percent. The 10 percent mismatch had to do with the much bigger role procurement plays in this sector. We’ve adjusted the course accordingly.”